Worthless and harmful garbage

Research shows that the frontal lobe of the brain, which is the person’s seat of judgment and moral decisions, can essentially shut off when they view porn. Psychiatrist David Greenfield[i] explains that, “When you’re in a sexual arousal process where you’re looking at pornography, you’re activating limbic parts of the brain.” The result is that the desire to see porn is so strong that it supersedes any feelings or cautions someone might have that would potentially hold them back from partaking in it.

Greenfield continues, “What we find with addiction and when patterns of behavior get out of hand, whether it has to be with porn, sex, drugs, alcohol or gambling, is that the neural hormonal pathways that project the frontal cortex from the mid-brain seem to cut off.” And then he adds, “The frontal cortex sends information back to the hippocampus and says ‘remember the last time you did this, this is not going to feel good,’ the ability for that circuit to occur is hampered.”

Recently released study analyzing porn use among young men found that those who consume porn on a regular basis are potentially less likely to get married. But this rising porn consumption is not limited just to young men; it is reaching your children as well. Donna Rice Hughes, CEO and president of Enough Is Enough, a nonprofit devoted to ensuring the Internet is a safe place for children, wrote an article where she provided an overview of the research that has been done on the subject of pornography, where she called the findings “eye-opening” and where she claimed that Internet smut has a “harmful impact on the emotional, mental and sexual health of young children, tweens, and teens.”

The palmist prays that God will help us turn our eyes away from that which is worthless so that we may be revived by His word. Don’t allow garbage to reside in your seat of judgment, the frontal lobe of your brain. Instead, invite God to take control of your mind and life.

Father God, help us to be free from the contaminating influence of pornography or any other harmful and sinful practice and instead help us to rejoice and live in the light of your word.